Wilton EMS upgrades technologyPublished Feb. 2, 2013

WILTON -- Wilton EMS is taking patient care to a higher level with new technology that lets responders communicate with emergency rooms while on the road.

The agency recently put devices in three of its ambulances that link cardiac monitors and electronic medical records to whichever hospital a patient is headed.

The Gateway mobile enterprise network is made by British Columbia-based firm In Motion Technology.

"With the Gateway, hospital physicians and staff will know the condition and medical history of our patients before we arrive at the ER," said Nashua Alexander, Wilton EMS chief of operations. "This allows everyone to make better patient care decisions, faster than ever before."

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Previously, emergency personnel would hand hospital staff a printout of patient and medical information upon arriving at the hospital.

The new devices cost $2,000 each.

In addition, the agency recently began leasing four new Zoll X Series cardiac heart monitors to work with the system. These cost a combined $18,000 and will be replaced after five years.

Alexander said it's less expensive to lease the monitors, which would cost about $26,000 each to purchase.

Wilton EMS is the first local rescue squad to obtain the new Gateway technology, he said.

In February, the agency will implement another upgrade -- RescueNet Link -- that will give emergency room doctors electrocardiogram data, patient vital signs and information about medicine in real time.

"That way the doctor can call and tell us if there's something else we should be doing," Alexander said.

That technology will include sensors that let medics know if drugs are being kept in the vehicle at too hot or too cold a temperature.

With a service area of 36 square miles, Wilton EMS responds to nearly 1,800 emergency calls per year, with 54 paid and volunteer personnel.

The new system also has GPS equipment so personnel at the agency's Jones Road headquarters know where rescue vehicles are at all times.

Responders don't have to manually control In Motion's system, so they can stay focused on patient care and not have to worry about whether communications are getting through.

In rural parts of the Upper Hudson Valley, where wireless coverage might be spotty, data will be able to roam across networks, keeping medics in constant communication with hospital staff at critical times. Alexander described it as a roving Wi-Fi "hot spot."

"Critical information will move wirelessly between Wilton ambulances and other health care providers who together can use that information to save lives," said Tony Morris, In Motion Technology vice president of sales and marketing.